Of course Silsbee hopes a buzzer shot isn’t needed when the teams play again at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at H-J. In the first game, Silsbee led by as much as 18 in the third quarter before H-J overcame its struggles to get the ball down court against the press.

“Putting pressure on them pretty much takes them out of their game because they’re young,” Silsbee guard Kelton Gaines said. “A lot of them just want to play into the crowd. We just stayed on top of the ball and didn’t let them get the momentum they wanted.”

That game is H-J’s only loss this season. And the Hawks (31-1 overall, 4-1 in District 21-3A) haven’t really had any other close games. Silsbee (19-6, 5-0) has won seven in a row. With no player taller than 6-foot-2, it’s been all about that defensive pressure.

“If we keep this going we probably can bring a state title back to Silsbee,” Silsbee guard Chris Elam said.

“As long as we stay together and we love each other out on the court, we should be good,” Gaines said of the H-J game. “I think we should win.”